214 WILD FOWL SHOOTING. 
The sculler must be constantly on the watch, and, 
when coming downstream, the formation of the timber 
or the ground shows him that he is approaching a pond, 
bayou, slough, bed of rice, of smart-weed, or willow 
flash. He must drift or scull slowly, keeping the bow 
with blind headed toward the point he intends making ; 
for the best blind is on the bow, and it is the most per- 
fect shield. 
No man can make a good duck-sculler unless he is 
thoroughly posted on the habits of the duck. He must 
know when and how to approach them, and to read 
their thoughts as they sit on the banks, or float on the 
water. This he does by their actions, and the expert 
can tell almost every time, long before he gets near 
them, whether or not he will get a shot, by the way 
they act while he is approaching them. 
The scull-boat demands the best of care, and must 
not leak a drop. The bottom is half filled with dry hay ; 
the sculler sits there for hours on the hay, and the boat 
must be in perfect condition. This requires careful 
attention, and when not in use, the boat should be 
kept under shelter, and thoroughly looked over and 
painted at least once a year—it is time and labor well 
spent. 
How to trim a scull-boat for timber and overflow 
shooting, I have fully explained in the article ‘ Scull- 
ing ducks on the Mississippi;” how to trim for ice 
shooting, in the chapter on “ Canada Goose shooting.” 
And now that you may see how we scull them in the 
wild rice, and where tiny lakes abound, imagine yourself 
comfortably seated on the hay in the bottom of the boat 
while Iam both engineer and pilot. On the bow, we 
have placed a goodly sized portion of an old muskrat 
